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Conan the Fearless
is the first Conan novel written by Steve Perry, published in February 1986 by TOR books as a trade paperback with a cover by Kirk Reinert image. The mass market edition was released in January 1987 with cover art by Boris Vallejo image. Synopsis Corinthia, North and West of Mornstadinos, in the secluded castle known as Slott, Sovartus of the Black Square summons the demon Djavul from Gehenna to do his bidding. Sovartus has abducted three children. He is searching for a fourth and binds Djavul to find the child for him. The Child of Fire. At the foot of a pass through the Karpash Mountains from Zamora to Corinthia, Conan rides a rich man's horse toward an inn. Fresh from some thievery, his horse carries saddlebags filled with coins and he flips a gold one to the innkeeper for food, wine and a room with a locking door. Early the next morning the Cimmerian kills three thieves who thought to surprise him while he slept. Wakened by the fight, the innkeeper and a merchant investigate. Later, at breakfast, Logarno the merchant speaks with Conan. Learning the Cimmerian plans to take the northern fork of the pass, the merchant warns him that it is haunted. Conan scoffs at the warning and soon leaves on his journey. Riding along a lake at the top of the pass, Conan's horse stops in its tracks and looks at the uniformly frozen water. Suddenly the lake starts to crack and heave in a number of places. Pure white humanoids, shaped like apes, pour from under the ice. It soon becomes obvious that the creatures are either intelligent or guided by another's will, for instead of rushing toward Conan, the majority of the creatures rush to either side of his position, to block his escape. With no other option, Conan vaults from his catatonic horse and charges the nearest of the creatures. Taking their measure, he manages to escape their trap, but his horse is not so fortunate. Unprotected, the unfortunate animal, and also Conan's supplies and his gold, is dragged down into the lake. Abandoning the doomed animal, Conan begins to run from the lake toward Corinthia. After a day of running and then walking Conan reaches the foothills at the mouth of the pass and glimpses the city of Mornstadinos, another day's travel ahead. Closer to the city, Logarno stops by the roadside to magically speak with his mistress, Djuvula the Witch. He informs her that a man named Conan could be the physical specimen she has been searching for; an exceptional human heart capable of powering the flesh golem she is assembling; the heart of a truly brave man. Unknown to Logarno or Djuvula, someone is eavesdropping on their conversation using a mechanical device called a storora. Lemparius, a politician holding an important position in the local government, seems mysteriously interested in the stranger, Conan. After his spying is done, he is revealed as a were-panther. Reaching Mornstadinos, Conan buys a loaf of hard black bread from an old lady and is directed to the Milk of Wolves Inn. The bread and the cheap wine he orders at the inn take the last of his money. Sizing up the many customers, he sees a group of thieves about to rob an old man sitting with a early-teen-aged girl. The old man uses illusions to dissuade most of the thieves but when he baits the leader with a similar illusion, the man becomes enraged, throwing his winecup to the side and drawing steel to attack the pair. As the lead-thief's luck would have it, the winecup strikes Conan's loaf of bread, knocking it to the floor, so Conan kills him...before he can complete his attack on the girl who has stepped forward to defend the old man. Realizing that he will be in trouble with the city guard for killing a man over a loaf of bread, the old man tells the innkeeper that Conan is their bodygaurd, a position that Conan accepts after some quiet discussion at their table, after the fact. Characters * Sovartus - Mage of the Black Square * Djavul - demon from Gehenna * Child of Water - child imbued with the elemental essence of water * Child of Earth - child imbued with the elemental essence of earth * Child of Air - child imbued with the elemental essence of air * Child of Fire - child imbued with the elemental essence of fire * Hogistum - Mage of the Black Square. Father to Sovartus, murdered by him as well by name only * Conan * Undines - Creatures resembling white apes in size and movement, smooth as polished crystal. composed of water, inhabiting the frozen Lake Spokesjo. * Logarno - Merchant of Corinthia with "interests" in Koth * Djuvula the Witch - half demon hedonist. * Lemparius - Center Strand of the Senate's Treble Whip. Were-panther. Locations * Castle Slott, Corinthia * Pass through the Karpash mountains between Zamora and Corinthia * Spokesjo Lake - haunted lake on the northern fork of the Corinthian road, near the summit of the pass. * Mornstadinos - small city in Corinthia Mystic Items Parchment of Slicreves - contains the The Seven Words that enables (along with various other preparations) a mage of the Black Square to summon the demon Djavul. Continuity Notes Publication History * (novel) • Steve Perry • Tor February 1986 trade paperback * (novel) • Steve Perry • Tor January 1987 mass market paperback Category:Conan book Category:Conan story Category:Conan novel